Madonna sells Fernand Leger painting for $7.2 million

"Trois Femmes a la Table Rouge," a Fernand Leger painting owned by Madonna, has sold for $7.2 million at a Sotheby's auction in New York.

"Trois Femmes a la Table Rouge," a Fernand Leger painting owned by Madonna, has sold for $7.2 million at a Sotheby's auction in New York. (Sotheby's)

David Ng

A Fernand Léger painting owned by pop star Madonna sold for $7.2 million at a New York auction Tuesday. Madonna had put the painting up for sale to benefit her charitable group, the Ray of Light Foundation.

The sale, which was part of a larger Sotheby's auction of Impressionist and Modern art, exceeded expectations. The auction house had originally estimated that the work would go for between $5 million and $7 million.

"Trois Femmes à la Table Rouge" was created around 1921 and is a quasi-cubist depiction of three women sitting around a red table. The identity of the buyer was not announced.

On her official Facebook page, Madonna posted a picture of a young girl and wrote: "I Hope to make many girls smile like Malala all around the world! Thanks to the amazing sale of my painting at Sotheby's we can make this happen soon! Thanks to everyone who helped make it happen! Art equals Revolution!"

Sotheby's said Madonna acquired the painting in 1990 from the Helen and William Mazer Foundation. The New York Times reported last month that the pop star had paid $3.4 million for the painting at a Sotheby's sale.

The pop star said in a statement earlier this year that she will "donate all the proceeds [from the Léger sale] to support girls' educational projects in Afghanistan, Pakistan and other countries where female education is rare or nonexistent."